The next morning, Longyu discovered that his mother had been completely serious when she said he would not be training.
His practice staff was still missing.
He had checked his room.
The courtyard.
The training hall where he normally practiced with Qianjun.
He had even considered asking Jiangmo whether he knew where it was.
Then he remembered who Jiangmo was and immediately abandoned the idea.
He probably knew.
He would probably also demand something in exchange.
Longyu eventually found himself sitting at a table with a cup of tea and three open books.
It was not exactly a punishment.
“That doesn’t count as resting.”
Longyu looked up.
Lingyu stood at the doorway.
“I’m sitting.”
“Your body is sitting.”
She pointed toward the books.
“Your head clearly isn’t.”
Longyu closed one.
“Better?”
Lingyu walked inside.
She was carrying two notebooks.
Longyu looked at both.
“Medical records?”
Lingyu smiled.
“Soul Ring absorption records.”
Longyu immediately reopened the book.
Lingyu sighed.
“You really don’t know how to rest.”
An hour later, all five children were gathered inside a small side chamber of the Worship Hall archives.
Longyu had expected mountains of books.
He found them.
But he also found something much more valuable.
People.
Blue Luan Douluo sat across from Luoyue.
Golden Crocodile occupied a chair that looked far too small for him.
Mu Qinghe reviewed documents beside Lingyu.
Qianjun remained near Longyu.
Renxue had managed to convince Qian Daoliu to attend part of the meeting.
Jiangmo appeared without anyone inviting him.
According to him, that meant he was the most important person there.
No one agreed.
Longyu spread four sheets of paper across the table.
“We are not searching for a Soul Skill.”
Golden Crocodile raised an eyebrow.
“No?”
“Not only that.”
Longyu pointed toward the profiles.
“A Soul Skill may be useful now and still harm the Martial Soul’s future development.”
Jiangmo picked up one of the pages.
“And how do you know that?”
“I don’t.”
Jiangmo smiled.
“Excellent start.”
Longyu ignored him.
“It’s a hypothesis.
If every Soul Ring introduces characteristics of the Soul Beast into the Martial Soul, then their accumulation should matter.”
Qianjun crossed his arms.
“Like what happened with your dragon?”
“Possibly.”
Longyu refused to say more.
One case was still only one case.
He had no intention of building an entire theory around himself.
“So,” Qian Daoliu said, “you want to choose every ring by considering not only the ability obtained, but also what may accumulate with the rings that follow.”
“Exactly.”
Golden Crocodile looked toward Jin Yue.
“That means we are not choosing just anything that hits hard.”
Jin Yue looked deeply offended.
“What’s wrong with hitting hard?”
“Nothing.”
Longyu intervened.
“But if all your Soul Rings only add strength, you could waste other characteristics of the Golden Crocodile.”
“Like defense.”
“Yes.”
“Endurance.”
“Yes.”
“Bloodline.”
Longyu nodded.
Jin Yue thought about it.
“And then I can hit harder?”
Longyu closed his eyes for a second.
“Yes.”
“Perfect.”
Golden Crocodile burst into laughter.
They began with Jin Yue.
Longyu had prepared an initial list of eleven Soul Beasts.
Golden Crocodile eliminated three in less than a minute.
“Not this one.”
Longyu looked down.
Golden Armored River Crocodile.
“Why?”
“Too dependent on water.”
“The records say it can fight outside water for several hours.”
“It can.”
Golden Crocodile pointed at the name.
“But it loses explosiveness.”
Longyu picked up his pen.
“How much?”
“Depends on the age.”
“Around five hundred years?”
The old man thought.
“After half an hour outside the water, it would already be noticeably weaker.”
Longyu wrote that down.
So did Luoyue.
Golden Crocodile looked at her.
“Why are you writing?”
“Because that wasn’t in the archives.”
Golden Crocodile fell silent.
Luoyue continued.
“Does its defense change too?”
“A little.”
Pen against paper.
“Speed?”
“Yes.”
More writing.
“Territorial behavior?”
Golden Crocodile frowned.
Luoyue looked up.
“And I’m studying the Soul Beast.”
Blue Luan smiled from the other side of the table.
“Answer her.”
Golden Crocodile glared at him.
But he answered.
The second beast they eliminated was the Ironhide Earth Rhino.
Longyu had considered its defense and constitution useful.
Golden Crocodile shook his head.
“Too terrestrial.”
“Jin Yue is terrestrial too.”
“That’s not what I mean.”
The old man tapped the table with one finger.
“Its strength depends too heavily on linear charges.
If she absorbs a skill based on that, it may be useful.
But if your accumulation theory is correct, I don’t want her Martial Soul developing rhinoceros characteristics.”
Jin Yue looked at her arm.
“That would be weird.”
“Exactly.”
Longyu crossed out the name.
Interesting.
Compatibility did not only mean attribute.
It could also involve morphology.
Behavior.
Combat method.
Bloodline.
Longyu added another category.
Structural Compatibility.
With Luoyue, things happened differently.
Blue Luan did not immediately eliminate candidates.
He asked questions.
“Why the Azure Wind Falcon?”
Luoyue answered:
“Speed.”
“I can see that.”
“Wind control.”
“That too.”
“Efficient flight.”
“What does efficient mean?”
Luoyue looked at her notes.
“It consumes little Soul Power during prolonged movement.”
Blue Luan nodded.
“And its weakness?”
Luoyue hesitated.
“I’m not sure.”
“Then you still don’t know it.”
It was not cruel.
Just a statement.
Luoyue lowered her eyes toward the book.
Longyu watched their interaction.
That was exactly what he wanted.
Not answers being handed over.
Questions.
Blue Luan pointed toward another candidate.
Cloudpiercing Swift.
“This species is faster.”
Luoyue reviewed the record.
“But it has poorer control in confined spaces.”
“Correct.”
“And its attack depends on speed.”
“Correct.”
“Then it probably prioritizes acceleration over maneuverability.”
Blue Luan smiled.
“Now you’re thinking.”
Luoyue wrote something down.
Lingyu worked differently.
She did not begin with abilities.
She began with physiology.
Mu Qinghe had brought twelve anonymous records from support-type Soul Masters.
“What are you looking for?” Renxue asked.
Lingyu turned a page.
“Effects after absorption.”
“Not only during?”
“No.”
Lingyu pointed toward one record.
“This Soul Master absorbed a Soul Beast with strong regenerative capabilities.
Over the following years, he developed slightly better Soul Power recovery even without using the Soul Skill.”
Longyu leaned closer.
“Confirmed?”
“No.”
Lingyu pointed toward two more cases.
“But I found similar patterns.”
Longyu immediately became interested.
“Same Martial Soul?”
“No.”
“Same type of Soul Beast?”
“Related.”
Mu Qinghe intervened.
“There is another problem.”
The children looked at him.
“Physicians normally record injuries, complications, or obvious changes.
Not subtle long-term positive effects.”
Longyu understood.
“Data bias.”
Mu Qinghe nodded.
“We look for problems because that is what we are asked to record.”
Lingyu wrote something else.
Longyu smiled.
This could become something much larger.
Renxue was last.
And she turned out to be the most frustrating.
She had too many good options.
Light-type Soul Beasts.
Sacred-type Soul Beasts.
Beasts with fire.
Beasts with purification.
Attack.
Defense.
Speed.
Flight.
“This is irritating,” Longyu said.
Renxue raised an eyebrow.
“Is my Martial Soul too good again?”
“Yes.”
“I can live with that.”
Qian Daoliu studied the records.
“Do not try to build everything with the first ring.”
Longyu looked at him.
“What do you mean?”
“You are treating the first Soul Ring as if it must represent her entire future.”
Longyu fell silent.
Qian Daoliu continued.
“The Six-Winged Seraph will have nine rings.”
Longyu understood immediately.
He had been overoptimizing.
He wanted every decision to be perfect.
But a system should not require perfection.
It should survive incomplete decisions.
“Then we prioritize.”
“Exactly.”
Renxue spoke.
“Attack.”
Longyu looked at her.
“I knew you’d say that.”
“Because I’m right.”
Qian Daoliu added:
“Light first.”
Longyu slowly nodded.
Light + Attack.
Purification could appear secondarily.
Sacred fire could wait.
That reduced the list considerably.
After nearly four hours, Jin Yue dropped her head onto the table.
“I want to fight something.”
“Not yet,” Golden Crocodile said.
“I want to fight you.”
“Even less.”
Renxue laughed.
Lingyu was still reading.
Luoyue had filled nine pages.
Longyu looked over the lists.
They still had too many candidates.
But now they were better candidates.
Then he remembered something else.
“We need age data.”
Jin Yue lifted her head.
“For the six hundred years?”
“To determine what you can endure.”
Golden Crocodile immediately spoke.
“That comes after evaluating her body.”
Longyu nodded.
“All five of us.”
Renxue frowned.
“Why all five if you already have your ring?”
Longyu opened his notebook.
“Because I need a reference.”
He pointed at himself.
“I have data from before and after absorption.”
Then he pointed toward the four girls.
“You don’t.”
Lingyu understood first.
“Comparison.”
“Exactly.”
Longyu wrote five names.
Beneath them:
Strength.
Endurance.
Soul Power.
Recovery.
Meridians.
Circulatory Capacity.
And several questions.
Jin Yue looked at the page.
“That sounds like training.”
“In part.”
She smiled.
“Then I like it.”
When they finally finished, Blue Luan called Luoyue again.
“Come.”
He led her toward another section of the Worship Hall.
The others followed.
He opened a door.
Inside were boxes.
Dozens.
Some old.
Some covered in dust.
“My records,” Blue Luan said.
Luoyue froze.
Longyu walked in behind her.
Maps.
Feathers.
Scales.
Teeth.
Expedition sketches.
Fragments of bone.
Descriptions of Soul Beasts.
Documents decades old.
Perhaps older.
And almost nothing was properly organized.
Luoyue looked simultaneously fascinated and horrified.
“All of this is yours?”
“Yes.”
“Is it classified?”
Blue Luan looked toward the boxes.
“More or less.”
Longyu saw Luoyue’s expression.
He almost felt sorry for the old man.
“Grandpa.”
Blue Luan blinked.
“Yes?”
“We’re going to have to talk.”
Longyu decided to retreat before becoming involved.
That night, he added a new sentence to his notes.
A research system does not only need new knowledge.
It must also prevent old knowledge from disappearing.
Beneath it he wrote:
Luoyue.
Then he turned to the next page.
Whale Glue.
Tomorrow they would begin searching for information.
And Longyu suspected that investigation would be considerably less organized than the Worships’ archives.